Strip clubs and heat--that's basically what The Daily Show with Jon Stewart has mentioned about Tampa during their preliminary Republican National Convention coverage.
One of the show's correspondents, Aasif Mandvi, went to high school and college in Tampa. In an interview with Miami New Times blog, he says:
"You can't ignore that fact, that the Republicans are coming and having their convention in the city that has the best strip clubs in the world," Mandvi tells Riptide. "If they don't take advantage of what Tampa has to offer, then they are missing out"
Mandvi hints at a skit on a forthcoming episode of The Daily Show, filmed at The Mons Venus club, with an aging pole dancer.
"That's where they invented the lap dance," Mandvi says of the Mons. "That's what they claim. With that kind of cultural heritage, you can't go wrong. Tampa is the birthplace of Hooters, for God's sake. It has a lot going for it."
Previously, The Daily Show featured its correspondents at "Training Camp" before the RNC.
When correspondents were asked what they knew about Tampa, their answers varied:
"It's horrible...it's hot...it's really hot."
That, coupled with Salon.com's article calling Tampa "America's Hottest Mess" is how Tampa is being portrayed in the national media so far.
